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Free-to-Play Pledge
The Combat Arms Free-to-Play Pledge was Nexon's "vow" to never allow unbalanced items into the game. History The original F2P pledge (Image #1) was the statement Nexon adhered to when Combat Arms was first released. At the time, the pledge was maintained by the variety of GP weapons at the time and cosmetic variants in the Black Market. Unfortunately, the company soon went back on all of their earlier promises. They began releasing unbalanced NX items and weapons with no GP variations (such as weapons and supply crates). No reason has been to given why it happened, though it is assumed that the change was made due to lack of sales (or sheer incompetence). Several years into the game, after a multitude of various NX items had been released (as opposed to GP items, which are still at a disadvantage) Nexon managed to completely revise their F2P pledge without telling the Community. The current state of the F2P pledge (Image #2) is exceedingly vague compared the original, allowing for all kinds of loopholes and a lot of flexibility in what the company can allow. Basically, the newer version of the pledge includes excuses (that were not there before) to allow NX-imbalance in the game. Analysis Be warned; this section reflects the subjective opinion of the original editor, and may not reflect the general opinion of the Combat Arms community, or of a significant proportion of its members. Is Combat Arms really "Free-to-Play?" First off, a quote from the original pledge: The "revised" quote from the new pledge: Basically, in the new version, Nexon attempts to divert the attention away from gameplay by focusing on how Nexon Passports are "free". Then in the second, rather advertised paragraph, Nexon "subtly" tells players how a "variety of weapons and items" are for sale, how most of them are cosmetic variants (they are not), and that they offer "new capabilities and weapons for players to use in combat". The Issue of Balance Next, some key points from the original: Now, the revised edition of the new pledge: As before, Nexon attempts to rationalize their profit by providing excuses that allow them to sell unbalanced items. If "balance" doesn't mean exact equality, what does? The company openly admits that while some players do work hard to achieve their rank, status, and access to gear, a young player with enough in their wallet can skip all of that and choose from an even larger variety of weapons which the average GP arsenal cannot compare to. What's the purpose of having ranks and restrictions if you can literally buy anything you want, even victory? Yes, even victory can be bought, in the form of Elite Moderators. Abusing your power by kicking everyone on the opposing team (in a Clan War) results in a perfectly legitimate win for you, not so different from using the same power to rid yourself of anyone who tries to stop you from powerleveling. Criticism *As Nexon doesn't adhere to their pledge; while Combat Arms is a "Free-to-Play" game, people often refer to it as "Pay-to-Win". *As Nexon edited their original Pledge to better suit their goals and wants, some say that Nexon cannot be held to their word, as their word is subject to change at any time. *The new Pledge also leaves a lot of room for movement in and around the original concept that Nexon attempted to put forth. Many feel this is rather unfair for players, but it can also be viewed as a good business strategy in many ways. Category:Controversy